Here for tattoo healing advice

[MichaelW]

So this is the initiation forum but have a question about healing, so not sure where that goes...might as well start here I suppose?

I started a sleeve a few months ago and all three sessions have ended with extremely think scabs and many spots with no color and what looks like scars. I’ve had three other tattoo from this same artist with no issues. My online dr google searches seem to come up with that my artist was heavy handed (no I did not mess with the scabs at all, I’m very careful with my aftercare). I’m only maybe 1/3 done with the sleeve but it just looks like crap so far. Pitting, raised scars, the whole 9 yards. I have a relationship with the artist so I don’t want to just cut and run and find another artist, but I’m nervous about him finishing the rest of the sleeve if it’s going to damage my skin so badly. I talked to him after the second session left me with so much pitting scars, but the third session having all the same issues, it doesn’t seem like he made adjustments to his technic. I’m not sure what to do...it really does look super messed up and damaged so far...

Edited January 12, 2020 by MichaelW

[SJP0tato]

It's hard to say if it's the technique, your natural healing response, or something during the healing process that's causing so much trouble, but if you've been dry healing you could try switching to the "wet" healing method with *-derm products.  The main purpose of this method is to avoid the heavy scabbing that can occur.  There's a good/long thread about it here:  

 

I'm trying it for my first, and so far it seems to be working as well as all the success stories listed there.  Good luck!

 

[MichaelW]

Unfortunately I used the derma shield for my outline and I had so many issues I had to go to the dr and he said #1 I had an infection in part of it and #2 looked like I’m either straight up allergic to it or something with the infection cause the rest of my skin covered with it reacted because the infection had my skin on high alert. I think that’s why the entire outline is now raised scar tissue. Cue me crying about the possibility my arm will just be a mass of scar tissue the rest of my life 😞